A New Choice for Weddings - Satoshi Murata, CEO of ParaLux

"Making weddings more free and expressive of who couples are."

Through their wedding media platform "BuraPura," ParaLux offers new wedding formats tailored to individual personalities and budgets. We spoke with founder Murata about the challenges in the wedding industry, his innovative approach, and his vision for the future.

――Please tell us about your journey to founding the company.

After graduating from Kyushu Institute of Technology's graduate school, I worked as an engineer at Mitsubishi Electric for three years. With around 1,000 colleagues in my cohort, I attended many weddings but increasingly found them "lacking substance." Each ceremony followed the same standardized format, diminishing the guest experience. This led me to believe there must be a way to create more original weddings where everyone could do what they truly wanted, which inspired me to start this business.

――Could you tell us about BuraPura's business operations?

BuraPura offers two primary services.

First, we function as a media platform sharing wedding information. We showcase wedding examples created by freelance wedding planners and provide information about wedding preparation.

Second, we offer tools to support wedding preparation, such as digital invitations and seating charts.
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Service website

BRAPLA Wedding: https://brapla.com/

BRAPLA WEB Invitation: https://brapla.com/invitation

PLAGIF: https://brapla.com/gift/hikidemono

――What are the main challenges in Japan's traditional wedding industry?

The biggest issue is the structure, which pressures couples to sign contracts before they know the detailed contents and limits them from choosing from the venue's restricted options. Moreover, these options are costly.

For example, a small table flower arrangement costs 5,000 yen, while the central table decoration costs 200,000 yen - the unit prices for individual items are surprisingly high.

Furthermore, although the average number of wedding guests has decreased from 60-70 to around 50 due to COVID-19, the total cost hasn't changed much. This is because the average cost per person has jumped from 50,000 to 70,000-80,000 yen. In Tokyo, the average is said to be 90,000 yen per person. At these price points, it's difficult for the next generation of couples to think, "We want to do this too..."

Therefore, this business model will soon reach its limits.

――How does your company provide solutions to these challenges?

We propose weddings outside of traditional wedding venues.

For example, we can significantly reduce costs by utilizing existing facilities like restaurants and event spaces. Original weddings can be realized for around 2-3 million yen.

Unlike traditional weddings, hosts have greater freedom to bring in their items, allowing them to purchase what they need and omit unnecessary elements, making cost control easier. Of course, it might be harder to envision the final result beforehand compared to wedding venues, but couples seeking more casual and intimate weddings appreciate this new option.

――From a business perspective, what are the challenges with traditional wedding venues?

There are several issues, but the main challenge is how difficult it is for new players to enter the wedding industry. This is because a specific major company controls the upstream customer referrals. Additionally, venue operations require substantial initial investment and securing prime locations, making it difficult for startups and new companies to enter.

Therefore, many new entrants don't build new venues but start small by renting restaurants or facilities.

We're also developing our business by partnering with existing venues.

――So that's how you're achieving cost reductions!

Yes, in traditional venues, everything is charged as an optional fee - from projector rentals at 20,000 yen to small table flower arrangements at 5,000 yen - even items that should be standard. Also, with restrictions on bringing outside items, couples can't prepare anything themselves.

As a result, the final cost often ends up being 1.5 to 2 times the initial budget (laughs).

In contrast, our model's strength is that it allows for more budget control and freedom in wedding planning, as couples can purchase necessary items and freely arrange decorations.

――Why did you choose to establish your base in Kitakyushu City?

I chose Kitakyushu City because having easy access to interns from my alma mater was essential for starting the business. As we developed our business in Kitakyushu, I found that compared to the Tokyo metropolitan area, there are fewer startups here, making it easier to receive support from the city and prefecture. There are 10-20 million yen annual startup support grants available, and the support is more substantial than in Tokyo.

――Financial support must be necessary for a newly established startup.

Yes, exactly.

Kitakyushu City was one of the earliest in Japan to support startup companies, and it's a very startup-friendly city. While we might face challenges in keeping up with trends and market size compared to Tokyo, regional areas have unique advantages that compensate for this.

For example, Kitakyushu is traditionally known as a manufacturing city, and perhaps because of this historical background, it has a straightforward and sincere business culture. Also, within Fukuoka Prefecture, there's a nice division where Fukuoka City focuses on commerce while Kitakyushu specializes in manufacturing, allowing for collaboration that leverages each city's characteristics.

Additionally, with good access via bullet train and air travel, I see the potential for developing unique business models that capitalize on our regional location.

Fukuoka is known for its great food, which is another attraction (laughs).

COMPASS Kokura, where ParaLux is locate

――What's your view on the industry's outlook?

We're at a significant turning point in how weddings are conducted. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to smaller-scale weddings, and as traditional values shift, more couples seek weddings that better reflect who they are.

However, this doesn't necessarily mean moving toward "casual" weddings. There's a growing demand for weddings where couples spend significantly on what truly matters to them while being cost-conscious in other areas. We're seeing an increase in such balanced approaches to wedding planning.

Future weddings will also become more open. One reason for this is the influence of social media. As people share various wedding styles and performances on social media, others discover that "this kind of wedding is possible too."

Moreover, there's a significant shift in values. More couples prioritize expressing their personalities and spending quality time with guests rather than adhering to traditional notions of luxury and formality. At BuraPura, we aim to provide flexible options to meet these evolving needs.

――Please share your future vision with us.

As mentioned earlier, the wedding industry is at a significant turning point.

As we move beyond the traditional concept of "wedding = venue," there's increasing demand for new options that allow for more freedom and individuality in weddings. In particular, more couples seek casual, intimate styles and want to prioritize time with their guests, requiring flexible approaches to accommodate diverse values.

However, there's also a challenge because there aren't enough wedding planners to support these new styles. Only about 200 freelance wedding planners are active across Japan, which isn't enough to meet the annual wedding demand. This situation could make it challenging to provide the new types of weddings that couples genuinely desire.

At BuraPura, we plan to expand our services to address these challenges. First, we will increase couples' options for free and personalized weddings while simultaneously creating an environment where freelance planners can work stably and build a system where they can utilize their expertise while earning income.

Through this, we aim not only to spread new wedding styles throughout the industry but also to build an ecosystem that supports freelance planners, continuing to help make special days possible for many couples.

Editor's Note

Throughout the interview, Murata's passionate desire to "make weddings more free" struck us deeply. His challenge to existing industry structures and his vision to create new wedding formats - free from standardized procedures and high costs - inspired us.

The freedom of expression that ParaLux offers in weddings provides a new experiential value not just for couples but also for each guest. In particular, Murata's words about "making it a special memory for guests too" resonated deeply.

We look forward to seeing how this challenge, which began in the regional city of Kitakyushu, will spread across Japan, popularizing new wedding formats and fulfilling many couples' dreams.

ParaLux : https://paralux.co.jp/

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